


Beware For All That Glitters Is Not Gold

by FlyWIthSerenity



Category: Among Us (Video Game), Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Breaking into forbidden areas, Cannibalism, F/M, Gaming, Horror, Not very graphic but it's mentioned, One-shot inspired by Among Us Undertale AU, The boys are not nice unless it is you, Undertale AUs mashed with Among US, Virtual Reality, space
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:22:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27661994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlyWIthSerenity/pseuds/FlyWIthSerenity
Summary: This fic was inspired by Llama_Goddess' boys from Aggre(g/v)ation and their Among Us AU on tumblr. Specifically the AU where MC (main character, aka the reader insert) is possessed by the Imposter and the question was raised of what would Sans, Red, and Skull do when the ship runs out of crewmates to devour.Llama's response:"Once they run out of humans to feed to her, their only option is to keep feeding. They’d rather kill the crews of a thousand ships than see her starve. They send out a false distress signal to a nearby vessel to encourage it to bring more food for her... until the guys either find a cure or discover some way to synthetically grow flesh, sacrifices must be made for her."And then my brain went on a tangent about ghost ships, flying rumors, and how would the boys (and MC!) evolve. Couldn't stop think about it so I had to write it out! So enjoy the AU that Llama_Goddess - wonderful author that they are - created and that I added a bit of "GHOST SPACE SHIP BUT VIDEO GAMES" to!
Relationships: Sans (Horrortale)/Reader, Sans (Underfell)/Reader, Sans (Undertale)/Reader
Comments: 4
Kudos: 59





	Beware For All That Glitters Is Not Gold

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Llama_Goddess](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Llama_Goddess/gifts).



_0800 - Cafeteria of the Osseous_

_‘How far would you go to get your hands on a treasure of unimaginable worth?’_

The words of his old academic advisor floated through the mind of one Miles Strop. The not-quite-ready-to-admit-middle-age-is-here man shifted impatiently as one of the three captains of the Osseous continued to drone on about leave procedures and when the ship would be departing the spaceport in three days' time.

_‘Would he just shut up already?! Ugh, Sans is as bad as that old windbag I had for an advisor.’_

Thick golden curls - his main attractive attribute that Miles’ last partner had claimed was always ruined by his expression - swayed with his aggravated shifting. How much longer would he have to wait before his plan could finally start?

“If you haven’t come aboard by the designated departure time, you will be left behind. Everyone here knows we have a slew of applications for positions on this ship. You have been warned. Now, about-”

An older model ship, the Osseous was not one that the common space-fairing being would think of when asked where crewmates would give their species-specific limb or other body part to work on. It was space-worthy and efficient in power consumption but nothing like the latest models floating out of the manufacturing stations.

But, the Osseous had something that no other ship, station, or even planet-side city had.

The Osseous had Star-chan.

Star-chan - the most comprehensive and engaging game AI in existence. 

A cute and bubbly sprite that went around in an old-fashioned pink space suit from when spaceships were much more susceptible to hull breaches. Sometimes she even removed the helmet and showed off the cute eyes underneath. Not to mention that over 50 games had been developed by her creator for Star-chan - in fantastically designed custom costumes - to explore and play in.

Let not the cuteness fool one - Star-chan was capable of even the most sinister plots when campaigning against other players in one of the games. The mixture of incredible technology, vivid adventures, a cute heroine, and the potential for (virtual) danger was an addicting combination. 

The legendary cutie roamed the virtual halls of the Osseous and all crewmates were welcome to access the gaming application built into the ship to join her. Star-chan could only be accessed via the ship’s interface and a virtual reality device but even the VR devices were provided for free as part of the benefits. As long as one did their duties and worked hard, of course.

The creator of Star-chan was the current short skeleton droning on. Sans of the Osseous was a conundrum. An extremely lazy skeleton in actions and appearances - he was also a programing genius who thought that porting cargo around the stars was an acceptable career choice.

_‘Pretentious fool.’_

What Miles still had not realized was that the very career choice of Sans showed his intelligence. With a crew handling the day-to-day tasks on the ship and two other captains to rotate shifts with, he had plenty of time to get lost in the labs on the ship or in the sealed core of the living quarters.

That was one of the many oddities on the already unusual vessel. Crewmates were allowed anywhere on board except for two locations. The first was the laboratory of Captain Sans and - honestly - most crewmates did not want to go near that area anyway lest they been volun-told into being lab assistants for however long the skeleton monster wanted. The few that had been strong armed into helping usually came back covered in multiple unidentified substances, slightly singed, and exhausted after working for 16 hours straight. 

No, the area that fascinated and called to most crewmates was the sealed core of the living quarters. The three captains occupied that space and were adamant that no one else entered. Twin doors of blast-proof steel guarded whatever lay on the other side and rumors swirled about what the living quarters were like. Why was there such secrecy? Such safeguards? That section even had a completely isolated ventilation system. 

Initially, Miles had been the abnormality among his crewmates as he had not cared about the mystery of the sealed core. Only one thing mattered to him and that was Star-chan. Luckily, his background in advanced craft engineering had gotten the attention of the second captain of the Osseous - Red. 

The somehow beefy skeleton was a mechanical genius and the Osseous proved his abilities as the older ship was riddled with advancements and innovations. Gold fang flashing, Red would order his hand selected team of engineers about in a manner that would have made his military brother happy. The plethora of dirty jokes and puns probably would have made his scream though.

_‘Crude humor - a sign of his unworthiness of my beloved Star-chan. Red - the moron - could not have even imagined such an enchanting being, much less created her. He doesn’t deserve her!’_

Seeing the captains in the virtual worlds of Star-Chan was not a common occurrence but when one did appear it was usually Red. Rage burned in Miles as he thought about the showboating captain. How many times has Miles’ attempts to impress Star-chan and become closer to her had been ruined by this buffoon? Captain Red always swept in and saved the day or some other grand gesture to steal Star-chan’s attention. 

_‘Bastard, as if we didn’t already have a limited time with Star-chan to begin with.’_

That was the one oddity of Star-chan. She was not always available to interact with. Most crewmates did not mind as even without Star-chan the games were available and a treat to play. Plus it almost made her more real to them as a real being is not always available. The common theory was that Star-chan was such a complex AI that Sans was constantly patching small updates or performing maintenance which required her to go offline until the work was finished.

Miles hated it.

There was never enough time with Star-chan! 

Which is why he was going to fix that.

Finally, Captain Sans dismissed the crew and they all began to file out to disembark from the ship. The third captain led the parade of beings towards the ship’s main hatch. His enormous bulk was clearly seen over most of the crewmates’ heads regardless of their species. As the captain in charge of security, Skull was always the one to open the hatch upon docking. A single glaring red eye light passed over Miles as he streamed out with the rest causing a shudder to run down his spine.

_‘Disgusting monstrosity. I bet he doesn’t even know how to interact with Star-chan. He’d probably give her a fright with that cracked skull of his.’_

Sneering, Miles followed the group of crewmates he loosely called friends. They were more light acquaintances but today they would be alibis. 

Almost to the entrance from the port into the station proper, Miles feigned surprise as he frantically ran hands through his pockets. The group of crewmates that he was wandering with paused to look at him in curiosity.

“Damn, I forgot the data pad I was going to have upgraded. Thought it was in my pockets. Going to have to run back quickly to grab it. How about you guys go ahead and I’ll catch up? Hitting up the traders section first, right?”

“Yeah, we want to get a head start on seeing what goods are available. Just catch up when you can.”

The crewmate - something with long fingers, four eyes, and a name Miles could never remember - answered for the group as the rest started walking forward again. One of his three fingered hands patted Miles reassuringly on the shoulder before following after the rest of the group. 

Sighing in relief, Miles returned to the ship as casually as possible while also looking flustered. 

Stage one - starting an alibi - had been successfully completed. It would be easy enough to join the rest of the group in the chaotic traders section and claim he had been back longer than they realized. 

Now onto stage 2 - getting back onto the ship without Captain Skull suspecting anything.

_‘Easy enough, he’s a moron unless fighting or eating.’_

The silent giant skeleton monster still stood guarding the hatch as Miles walked up the ramp. Seeing the red eye light narrow in confusion, Miles held up his hands and let out a nervous chuckle.

“Forgot something in my quarters, Captain. Can’t get a data pad upgraded with the latest advancements if it is on my bunk.”

Time seemed to stretch as the skeleton stared down at him before he nodded slowly and gestured for Miles to enter. 

“Do not… take too long… and waste… shore leave.”

Deep and rumbling, Skull’s voice sped up Miles’ steps as he darted in the direction of the corridor to his assigned quarters. Other crewmates swore that Captain Skull was surprisingly kind but Miles doubted that. Even his voice was terrifying.

The door to his quarters hissed open and then shut. Inside was a mostly barren room filled with the basic necessities for a human. In the six months that Miles has spent on the ship he hadn’t bothered to decorate unlike others. Why bother fixing up a physical space when all he cared about was time in the virtual world with Star-chan?

Grabbing the data pad off where he had left it on the bunk, Miles turned to his workspace and pulled out a tiny rectangular shape. A greedy grin flooded over his face as he stared at it.

Star-chan was finally going to be his!

Miles was not content with simply seeing Star-chan and having to share her with the other beings aboard the ship. No - he wanted her all to himself and today was going to be the day that it happened.

_‘Stage 2 complete - now onto stage 3!’_

None of his crewmates nor his captains knew that Miles had two degrees - one in engineering which was on his application to the Osseous and one in artificial intelligence which he had kept hidden when applying. It had taken months of playing with Star-chan and releasing hidden worms into her worlds to track down where the physical location of her algorithmic engine was.

Upon gaining that data along with slowly measuring how much storage space her core code would take - Miles was ready to build the perfect little data pod to transport Star-chan in. He had even gone so far as to double the amount of storage needed on the little device as precaution. 

There was only one complication.

Star-chan’s series of servers had to be in the sealed core of the ships. All of the data packages flowing to and from her avatar came from that network which was heavily firewalled. Captain Sans was no slouch in that regard. 

However, even the best technical minds often overlooked physical weaknesses. Miles was sure that all he had to do was get into the sealed core section and plug in his little device into the nearest port.

After all, who would guard against physical devices being added to a system in a location that no-one but the captains could go?

Well, no-one but the captains and now MIles. 

Snickering, the human tucked the small drive into his pocket and strolled out of his quarters. By this time, most of the crew must have disembarked. Captain Skull would be guarding the hatch while the other two negotiated supply trades with the station’s quartermaster. The routine never changed from spaceport to spaceport. 

It took Miles mere moments to reach the heavy steel doors marking the entrance to the private quarters of the captains. Making sure that the hallway was clear, he removed a slim card from the chest pocket of his uniform and slid it into the scanner.

Seconds later, the doors opened with a deep hiss and thud.

The cryptocard had worked!

It had taken most of his credits at the last port but it had actually worked!.

Grinning gleefully, Miles gently removed the cryptocard from the scanner and walked into what seemed to be an airlock between the two sections. 

A thud resounded behind him as the steel doors slid shut.

A single steel door stood between him and victory.

Miles swiped the cryptocard again.

The door unlocked with a hiss.

Chuckling in delight, he grabbed the handle and pulled it open. Miles now stood in a brightly light corridor. At the other end was an arched doorway and flickering colored lights as the sound of one of Star-chan’s games trickled down to him.

_‘Do they have an interface set-up with a physical display? This is almost too easy!’_

Slowly, he crept down the corridor.

“Nyahaha! You can’t outmatch the great Star-chan! Anyway, I am going to take a quick break - data update! See you guys around later!”

The voice sounded so real! What sort of speakers were installed here? Miles made a mental note to snag a glimpse of the brand name. He needed to match if not exceeded their quality!

And then all thoughts drained from his mind.

Miles’ mouth dropped in shock as he stood in the archway.

“YOU ARE REAL?”

* * *

_Reader’s POV_

The harsh shout echoed through the living quarters that Red and Sans had customized into your gaming den - complete with speakers and several monitors so they could watch you play. Skull in particular loved snuggling up and watching you race across the screen in the adorable outfits that he had designed for Sans to program in. 

Flinching, you turned away from the VR stand where you had been placing your VR device to observe a human you had never seen before staring back at you in shock. He was older and not very fit looking but the voice and the curls range a small note in your mind.

“Miles? Engineer 4?”

Tears welled up in his eyes and the human took a step closer to you. Instinctively, you took a step back.

“Oh Star-chan, you remember me! You are real! I can’t believe it. Please, I have to touch you.”

Eyes growing wider in horror, you scrambled back towards the center of the room as the wildly emoting man raced forward.

Something wiggled inside you.

“Oh, don’t run, my love! I want to worship you. To love you. To adore you.”

“Stay back! DON’T COME ANY CLOSER!”

Miles did not listen.

“You will not reject me, Star-chan! We are perfect together! PERFECT!”

Miles kept advancing.

The wiggling inside you became stronger. 

Out of options, you leaned back against the table in the center of the room and frantically hit the large red button in the middle.

A loud alarm blared and red lights flooded the room. 

So did skeletons. 

Swept up into Skull’s strong arms, you peered with tears in your eyes up at him before burying your face into his warm jacket. Terrified sobs wracked your frame but Skull knew what to do. Your gentle giant walked to the farthest corner from the others and sat down to cradle your form while rocking. 

Slowly, your tears dried off. 

He seemed to realize that you were back in control and slightly lessened his grip on your form so you could look up to meet his concerned eye light. Gently, he placed a kiss upon your upturned forehead before speaking.

“Need… another… injection?”

“Yes, please. It… almost got away.”

Pulling a small cylinder out of a pocket in his jacket, Skull gently lifted up your shirt to show a tiny amount of flesh before placing one narrow end of the cylinder on it. The automatic injection function took over from there which was a relief to the large skeleton. He had hated having to manually give you the injections with his large phalanges. 

“Are you drugging Star-chan? Is that why she is tra-”

The yell from the bound form of Miles was swiftly cut off by a cuff of Red’s fist. Glowing red bonds of magic held the human man prone and upright as the skeletons looked at him in annoyance. 

Blood from being tackled to the floor by Red seeped into the golden curls. 

Sans looked at him in disgust before turning to look at Skull.

“Better keep her over there until the serum has had time to take effect. This one is leaking a bit.”

“I have a name, you know!”

“Oh, I do know - Miles Strop. An engineer specializing in space craft mechanics and artificial intelligence.”

The shocked look on Miles’ face caused Red to chuckle darkly before leaning closer to the bound man who shrank back as much as possible from those sharp teeth.

“Thought we didn’ know, did ya? Ya are even more of a moron that I thought.”

The human’s face flushed with indignation but before he could speak Sans interjected.

“Gag him for now, Red. I don’t want to hear his whining.”

“Gladly.”

Dropping into a chair next to the nearby table with a heavy sign, Sans steepled his fingers while staring down Miles. He pointedly ignored Red’s smirk at his dramatics. A skeleton has to have fun sometime after all. 

It had been so long since they had proper prey to play with.

“Now, engineer 4, I must regretfully inform you that you have decided to leave our employ and strike out in this station for new opportunities. At least, that is what we will tell the rest of the crew.”

The stench of terror rose up from the bound human causing all of the skeletons to wrinkle their nasal cavities in disgust. Thankfully, you did not have that impressive of a nose. 

“Ever heard the rumors of The Bloody Skeld? No? Perhaps you were too caught up in your own self-inflated importance to listen. Take a seat and listen. They go like this…”

Unable to resist, Miles was shoved into a sitting position on the ground as Red stood behind him. 

“A century or so ago, one of the Skeld transport crafts was taken over by the species we still only know as the Imposters even to today. It was a common event back then. Ships were easily wiped out by the imposters or the sabotage that they created. This was in the days of always wearing space suits because of hull breaches after all.”

The stilled image of your avatar in her cute pink suit hung to the side on the screen and you saw Miles’ eyes dart to it.

“But something went wrong on this Skeld - at least for the Imposter’s plans. Instead of taking over the ship by eliminating the crew, part of the crew eliminated them. And then all of the other crewmates. Unable to satisfy their thirst for blood, that Skeld began wandering the nearby solar systems to lure in other ships with fake distress signals and other tricky ploys.”

Skull snickered at those words as he nuzzled you closer. He enjoyed watching Sans slowly tear people apart with words. Especially when they hadn’t even realized it was happening.

“Staffed by undead abominations - as rumor has it - the craft now known as The Bloody Skeld wanders the cosmos still. Seeking flesh, blood, and destruction.”

And perhaps Sans’ flair for the dramatics amused him as much as it annoyed Red.

“However, there is one more rumor about The Bloody Skeld that many focus on - nay - become consumed by. The rumor that a priceless treasure is contained within the depths of the ship. Many a foolhardy adventurer has come looking for the treasure but none have left… alive.”

Chuckling at the confused look on the captive human, Red leaned closer to growl into his ear.

“Pretty spooky, eh? We don’t mind the rumors. It’s nice when prey delivers itself into our hands.” 

Dawning horror started to wash over the human’s expression and Sans’ grin grew wider in satisfaction.

“The problem with rumors is that they only hold kernels of truth. The Imposter that boarded our ship wasn’t eliminated - it was contained after infecting the sweetest, kindest, and cutest human on board.”

Without looking, Sans knew a bright pink blush covered your face as it was accompanied by the tell tale squeak you always made when embarrassed. You were really just too precious. 

**_Their_** precious human.

“ ‘Star-chan’ - as you know her - survived the infection but had new needs as a result. Specifically, a need for flesh. So we - her protectors and mates - provided for her as one would want to do. When we ran out of crewmates - well - we got a bit creative. Voilà! The truth to the rumors.”

“Nowadays, our darling mate does not have many relapses into a feeding frenzy due to a serum we perfected about a decade ago. It keeps the Imposter inside her stable and content as long as she has a protein-rich diet. However, it is not 100% effective if blood or - even worse - flesh is spilled freshly around her.”

Heavy boney hands gripped Miles' shoulders as Red loomed above him. 

“That’s why the nerd here made our sweetheart a way to play with others without risking them. She’s really a darling’ and still hates causing bloodshed, don’t ya?”

Content to watch Sans and Red handle Miles, you nodded emphatically from your place in Skull’s arms. The giant skeleton purred happily as you wiggled closer in his embrace. 

“So everyone is happy and safe.”

“Until you broke in, of course. I had a suspicion this was coming. Don’t think I didn’t notice your little cyber worms gathering data - data that I allowed them to gather. The sudden drain on your credits was another signal that you would strike soon. I ‘regret’ to inform you that your cryptokey is complete bullshit. A contact of ours planted it so you could gain access. And ‘Star-chan’ knows to hit the signal when anyone unauthorized comes in.”

Terrified, Miles looked at Sans and the smug skeleton could read the question in his eyes. Grin turning ice cold, Sans was kind enough to answer the question.

“We ran low on back-up flesh after an incident a few months ago. Like Red said, it is always easiest when the prey comes to us.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! 
> 
> Seriously, go check out Llama_Goddess' works here. They are excellent and magical and fantastic!
> 
> If you like my writing, please feel free to tune into WeirdTober 2020 - another inspired fic but this time by PineconeTrinklebriar's Nightlights series (they are also amazing!).


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